Hors d'oeuvres - the latest, most interesting news

This part of our website has been prepared to extend our Railvolution news service. Its objective is to offer you snippets of the latest, most interesting news, accompanied by photos. On one hand this will let you to have a sneak preview of what the forthcoming number of Railvolution will contain. On the other, it will enable our editorial staff to provide you with information that is at their fingertips – and why waste exciting pieces of news while waiting until we have the printed version of the magazine ready for distribution? What is more, on the website pages we are in a position to publish photos for which there will be insufficient space in the printed magazine!

Please bear in mind that it is not our intention to 'digitalise' Railvolution! The printed magazine will still continue, with its full range of articles and news items. But we hope that you enjoy this new offering, and that it will stimulate your interest in our unique publication.

And Now Yiwu To Praha Container Services

At the time when the Praha to Yiwu service departed, in late July (see Hors d’Oeuvres reports on 20 July and 4 August 2017), it was announced that there would soon be a complementary westbound service. This departed from Yiwu on 9 September (see photo) and reached the METRANS terminal in Praha-Uhříněves on the 24th. InterRail Holding, the operator of this service, plans now to realise four westbound runs in total. The second one followed just a week after and reached the destination on 2 October 2017. In the second photo it is seen passing through Praha-Malešice, hauled by ČD Cargo's 163.217.

Container Consignment From Praha Arrives In Yiwu

04 Aug 2017 23:53

The consignment of containers which departed from Praha-Uhříněves by rail on the afternoon of 19 July arrived in Yiwu at 11.18, local time, on 4 August. The run traversing Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan, thus took just under 16 full days. The working was a standard block train of 41 containers, some from Germany, the others from the Czech Republic, with payloads including Czech automotive components and crystal glass.

Yiwu to Barking Container Service Nears London

17 Jan 2017 19:22

On 1 January 2017 a test consignment of containers left Yiwu, bound for the Barking container terminal in the East End of London, where arrival is scheduled for early on the 18th. This is the first ever China to Britain railfreight service, even though these services have been evolving now for a decade between China and towns and cities in mainland Europe. Transhipment took place on the borders of China and Kazakhstan, between Belarus and Poland, and finally at the Duisburg terminal, since thence to Barking a rake of wagons certified for use through the Channel Tunnel had to be used.

The train was loaded with 44 40-foot containers, of which 34 continued from Duisburg to Barking. The consignments consisted mainly of household items, bags, textiles and suitcases. The service represents the latest development towards an effort to make China to Europe railfreight attractive for conveying cheap consumer goods.

The organisers of the service are Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment and InterRail Holding, with Brunel Project Cargo being the forwarding partner in Britain. PKP Cargo was responsible for haulage from Malaszewice to Duisburg and DB Cargo for the rest of German portion of the journey and between Calais and Barking, with B Logistics taking over for the run through Belgium and France. This photo shows the train on the evening of 16 January in Hasselt, Belgium, hauled by B Logistics’ 186 217, which is on hire from Alpha Trains Europe.

First China To Spain Freight

The first through train service carrying containers between China and Spain departed from Yiwu in central-eastern China on 18 November 2014 (see first photo). It was routed via the breaks of gauge at Alashankou/Dostyk, Brest/Małaszewicze and Hendaye/Irún, and reloaded three times between rakes of wagons during its 13,052 km journey, traversing six countries, before finally reaching the Madrid-Abroñigal logistics complex on 9 December.
The payload consisted of 30 40-foot containers, but moved in the same train as other consignments during transit through CIS to meet minimum requirement for a block train, 41 40-foot containers. The service was arranged by IRS InterRail Services jointly with Kedentransservice and CRIMT, while DB Schenker and its subsidiaries provided haulage across the entire stretch of the 1,435 mm network from Małaszewicze to Irún. Transfesa Rail’s 335 010, on hire from Alpha Trains Iberia, shown in the other photo arriving at Madrid-Aboñigal, hauled the train from the French border onwards.